Test Icicles were a short-lived rock band that formed in England, primarily influenced by

post-hardcore Post-hardcore is a punk rock music genre that maintains the aggression and intensity of hardcore punk but emphasizes a greater degree of creative expression. It was initially inspired by post-punk and noise rock. Like post-punk, the term has bee ...

dance-punk Dance-punk (also known as disco-punk, punk-funk or techno-punk) is a post-punk subgenre that emerged in the late 1970s, and is closely associated with the disco, post-disco and new wave movements.Rip It Up and Start Again: Post Punk 1978-19 ...

and

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

but containing musical elements from a variety of genres (notably dance, hip hop,

crossover thrash Crossover thrash (often abbreviated to crossover) is a fusion genre of thrash metal and hardcore punk. The genre lies on a continuum between heavy metal and hardcore punk. Other genres on the same continuum, such as metalcore and grindcore, ma ...

, and

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

). The band was formed in 2004 by Rory Attwell and Sam Mehran, who were later joined by

Devonte Hynes Devonté Hynes (born David Joseph Michael Hynes, 23 December 1985), also known as Blood Orange and formerly Lightspeed Champion, is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and director based in New York City. From 2004 to 2006, Hynes was ...

. Hynes and Mehran were both 18 years old at the time of the band's inception. The group has since become notable due to the later success of its members.

History

Prior to forming the band, Atwell, Hynes and Mehran (all of whom shared vocal and guitar duties) had met each other through mutual friends. The trio's preference for the same nightspots (such as the Afterskool night club, in London) also led to frequent meet-ups. Initially the band formed under the moniker Balls with Ferry Gouw, who shortly after went on to form

Semifinalists Semifinalists were an English indie rock band. History Adriana Alba (vocals/keyboards), Ferry Gouw (vocals/guitar) and Chris Steele-Nicholson (vocals/guitar/bass/drums/keyboards) met at London Film School; the group attempted to create a soundt ...

, effectively in the role Hynes eventually filled. Gouw left the band for an extended trip to Indonesia, at which time Attwell and Mehran recruited Hynes and changed the band name to Test Icicles, the new band name also being a suggestion from Gouw. All three members of the group were involved in numerous, short-lived musical projects before the forming of Test Icicles.

Split

In February 2006, the band announced they were splitting up. On 26 April 2006 the band released ''

Dig Your Own Grave ''Dig Your Own Grave'' was a CD/ DVD EP released on 23 April 2006 by Test Icicles. It contained a CD of remixes and other previously unreleased material, which was accompanied by a DVD of music videos and live footage from a gig at the LSE in ...

'', an EP meant as a farewell from the band. It featured a CD with remixes and unreleased tracks, and a DVD with the band's music videos.

Post-Test Icicles

After the band split, the individual members continued to stay active, becoming involved in a number of

side project In popular music, a side project is a project undertaken by one or more people already known for their involvement in another band. It can also be an artist or a band temporarily switching to a different style. Usually these projects emphasize ...

s between them. Mehran was believed to have moved back to America after the split and claimed to have been spotted working in a record store in New York. In July 2018, Mehran was found dead in his

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

home due to suicide, just after completing work on a planned solo album. Hynes paid tribute to him on

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

, saying, “Every time I was with you we were 17 again. You were such a gift to this world. The floor has gone and I don’t know where to stand. RIP.”

Members

* Rory Attwell (aka Raary Deci-hells, Raary Rambert RAT ATT AGG, Rory Brattwell) English (born in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, England) — guitar and vocals * Sam Mehran (aka Sam E Danger, Sam E Slaughter) American (born in Miami, moved to

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater A ...

, Australia, then to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

before moving to England) — vocals and guitar (died July 2018) * Devonté Hynes (aka Dev Metal, !Ved) English (born in

, England) — guitar, keyboards and vocals

Touring members

Adam Bainbridge Kindness is the solo project of English singer Adam Bainbridge. History In 2007, Adam Bainbridge was a recipient of the Eric James Johnson Memorial Fellowship, at The Philadelphia Institute for Advance Study. ''Live in Philly'' was release ...

(aka DJ Jitset) English (Born in Peterborough, England) — DJ

Equipment

* Rory Attwell (Guitars - Wilson Bros. Venture VM-75, Fender '72 Deluxe Telecaster) * Devonté Hynes (Guitars - Squier HH Showmaster (hot pink), Aria II Pro ZZ Deluxe, and in earlier shows, he used a Telecaster copy). * Sam Mehran (Guitars - Les Paul Deluxe copy, Peavey Raptor) Amps - All three of the members would switch guitar duties, usually sharing the same amps. They usually used a Peavey Valveking 1x12, a small

Trace Elliot Trace Elliot is a United Kingdom-based bass amplification manufacturer, and has a sub-brand, Trace Acoustic, for acoustic instruments. History In 1979, a music shop in Romford, Essex, UK, called Soundwave was building and hiring out PA sys ...

combo, or a Fender Hot Rod deluxe. Keyboard - Dev used a

Korg , founded as Keio Electronic Laboratories, is a Japanese multinational corporation that manufactures electronic musical instruments, audio processors and guitar pedals, recording equipment, and electronic tuners. Under the Vox brand name, t ...

Microkorg. Effects - It is hard to see which effects they used, but one picture shows an Electro Harmonix WORM modulation pedal, which is probably responsible for the ring modulation effect in the song "Boa vs. Python". In an interview they claimed to use the same effects as nu-metal group

KoЯn Korn (stylized as KoЯn, or occasionally KoRn) is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The band is notable for pioneering the nu metal genre and bringing it into the mainstream. Originally formed in 1993 b ...

Discography

Studio albums

* '' For Screening Purposes Only'' (31 October 2005) #69 UK

Singles and EPs

Demos

* "4 Track Demo" (July 2004)

References

External links

Farewell gig review on Sound Generator

Coverage in ''NME''

"Band of the Day: Test Icicles"
''Spin'', 2 November 2005
Interview on XFM

Videos

YouTube
- Circle Square Triangle music video
YouTube
- What's Your Damage music video
PUNKCAST #836
- video of Test Icicles' first U.S. show at

Sin-é Sin-é (; from the Irish phrase meaning "that's it") was a music venue in New York City that helped launch the careers of several noted musicians in the early 1990s. History Original café The original Sin-é, located at 122 St. Mark's Place ...

, on 15 September 2005
BBC
- Test Icicles session video and interview
YouTube
demon(sic) Insanity Problem music video {{Authority control Musical groups established in 2004 Musical groups disestablished in 2006 English indie rock groups Dance-punk musical groups Domino Recording Company artists 2004 establishments in England 2006 disestablishments in England